A chance to show off his blinding speed and his ball-hawking defensive prowess. A chance to rattle a running back's teeth with a punishing tackle. And, most of all, just a chance to show he belonged there and could hold his own in a Division I football program whose history stretches back more than 120 years.

Fordham gave Melanophy his shot, and the 6-foot-1, 215-pound safety made the most of it.

He went from a walk-on and special-teams player as a freshman, to a defensive starter as a sophomore, to a scholarship player as a junior, to a team captain as a senior. It really is a remarkable story, the sort of thing usually reserved for childhood fantasies and Hollywood movies.

But the story doesn't end there.

In fact, a new chapter may be in the works at this very moment.

Melanophy has been invited to attend the New York Jets' rookie free-agent minicamp, which is scheduled to run from May 10-12 at the team's facility in Florham Park, N.J. The Jets contacted Melanophy's agent, who then called Melanophy on Monday with the exciting news.

"It's been a crazy day and a half," Melanophy said with a laugh during a phone interview Tuesday afternoon. "It's a dream come true, but I know that I still have a lot or work to do. It's been an awesome, awesome day and a half, but it's time to get back to work. The thrill of getting the phone call is over. I have to be ready to play football in nine days.

"I have those three days to show them that I belong there, that I've worked hard enough and that I'm good enough," Melanophy added. "I've got to make them believe in me."

Melanophy wasn't drafted and he hasn't signed a contract, but he did impress the Jets' scouts enough for them to want to take another look. By being invited to rookie camp, Melanophy earned himself a chance to prove himself.

Just like he did at Fordham four years ago.

It was only a few days after he graduated from Danbury High, in fact, that Melanophy, an eager, fresh-faced kid, arrived at Fordham.

"We graduated (from DHS) on a Friday, I ran at the Nike Outdoor Nationals with our track team on Saturday, and I had to come here (to Fordham) that following Friday," Melanophy recalled. "I was confident coming here for summer conditioning that I would be in good shape and perform well here, thanks to (DHS track coach Rob Murray). I was excited about it. I saw it as a great opportunity where I had nothing to lose. That's kind of how I'm going about this whole next step with the Jets. I have nothing to lose. I'm confident in myself, and I'm confident in my abilities and my work ethic."

His coaches at Fordham were also confident in him. Not every football player can go from being a walk-on at a Division I school as a freshman to being a team captain as a senior. That's a special player.

"The first two things you think of are his intelligence and his work ethic," Fordham coach Joe Moorhead said. "Brendan was like having another coach on the field. He really understood and digested the game plan and was able to think like a coach on the field. Throughout the offseason and during the season, his work ethic is unparalleled. I think that showed up in his testing when we had our Pro Day. All of his measureables -- his 40, his broad jump, his vertical -- all those things were off the charts. So, you're going to find a kid who's going to play smart football, play as hard as he can and give you great speed, great size and great strength."

Melanophy, whose time in the 40-yard dash has been clocked as fast as 4.44 seconds, registered 41 tackles and two interceptions this past season. His interception in the final minute of the Rams' game Oct. 6 against Georgetown sealed a 38-31 victory in The Bronx.

"The big thing is he's very physical in run support," Moorhead continued. "We ask our safeties to get involved in stopping the run and he is a very sure tackler and made a lot of plays at or near the line of scrimmage. By the same token, we asked him to play a lot of coverage on some of the quicker receivers in the league. The big thing with a safety is they have to be able to fill in and stop the run and they have to be able to cover the pass as well, which I think he did very well."

Melanophy's coaches at Danbury High were certainly aware of his athletic ability. Curiously, however, he didn't have a parade of college recruiters outside his front door with scholarship offers.

"He was not extremely recruited out of high school, probably because he was more humble than anything else," said Danbury High head coach Dan Donovan, who was the Hatters' defensive coordinator under Rick Davis during Melanophy's playing days on Clapboard Ridge. "At Fordham, he worked extremely hard on the game of football, on his body in the weight room and on his speed and agility. He became a three-year starter there and a captain.

"In high school, we definitely thought he should have been recruited more," Donovan added. "He had that raw talent, he had a tremendous work ethic, and he was a three-sport athlete. He had a very successful career in track and played center field in baseball. We knew that he was a very good athlete and we were shocked that no one else took a shot at him."

The coaches at Fordham had told Melanophy that, if he continued to work hard, they may be able to find a place for him in their program. As it turned out, Melanophy made his own place.

The only regret Melanophy has about his upcoming NFL tryout is that Davis, his former coach, won't be able to experience it with him. Davis, a longtime coach and teacher at Danbury High, died in December after a year-long battle with pancreatic cancer. He was only 64.

Davis was the Hatters' head coach for eight seasons, from 2001-08. He posted a career record of 47-36-4 and led Danbury to the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference title games in 2001 and 2003, losing both.

"I know Coach Davis would be extremely proud of Brendan and is smiling from heaven," Donovan said.